TOPEKA (KSNT) – October is National ADHD Awareness Month, a disorder that impacts millions of Americans nationwide.
ADHD stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it currently impacts over 15 million adults nationally.
ADHD causes people to have difficulty focusing and getting work done, forgetting tasks, bad organizational skills and the list goes on. Many types of medication help people to control these symptoms, but they can have negative side effects such as loss of appetite, sleeping problems and irritability.
“I think school plays a really big role in it because in order to diagnose, they have to have these behaviors in two separate locations,” said Pediatric nurse practitioner at Partners in Pediatrics, Taylor Smith. “So, home and school is the typical that we see. I think that when they’re younger, like kindergarten age, first grade, that it’s we have to be really careful to differentiate between, you know, is this a normal five- and six-year-old behavior versus are we causing more ruckus at school or at home than the average child.”
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If you believe you or your child has ADHD, you can get tested at any age by your primary care physician or a psychiatrist. You can visit Partners in Pediatrics’ website by clicking here.
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